Long Story Short

California's Proposition 60 was a law proposed by The AIDS Healthcare Foundation that would force adult performers to wear condoms while shooting sex scenes in the state. The law was rejected on the ballot and porn stars couldn't be more excited.

Long Story

While America was immersed in the presidential election — and very much remain so — the porn industry in California was immersed in a historic vote of its own.

On the California ballot was a proposed law that would shake up the adult industry, potentially driving it underground or out of state. Essentially, Proposition 60 demanded condoms be worn in all film shoots within the state. If the porn video didn't include protection, the onus for reporting the violation would be on the viewer who would be entitled to damages even if they couldn't prove harm, reports The Wrap.

My first reaction to hearing about Prop 60 was: how bad could it be to get porn stars to wear condoms? It wouldn't really impact the aesthetic and would prevent the transfer of HIV. All good, right?

Wrong.

Besides being bad for business, Prop 60 could have been extremely dangerous to performers, which was reasonably acknowledged by California press and both major parties leading to its defeat on Tuesday.

But how could protecting people from HIV be dangerous?

Adult actress JuliaAnn, one of three top Brazzers stars we spoke to, told AskMen via email that the dangers to porn actresses and their families were very, very real. Ever since Prop 60 was proposed, she'd received email letters from fellow actresses about the harassment they faced and would very likely face to an even worse extent if Prop 60 passed.

"There were death threats, harassment of their mothers and husbands," she said. "There was one letter where the performer discussed her brutal physical assault and was then told she would have to hide for the rest of her life. These performers are not an anomaly. Almost all of us have been stalked, harassed or threatened at some point in our careers. The dangers of Prop 60 were terrifying for us."

By giving the power of reporting to viewers, Prop 60 "offered every California resident money to come after us," she explained.

I hear you. Prop 60 was horrid and could have really hurt us as women. Thank god it didn't pass. https://t.co/6buXhOvcfv

Ok, so I get that putting the punishment in the hands of viewers is a terrible idea, but what's so bad about using the condoms themselves?

First off, there quite simply isn't an HIV problem in porn. The last time anyone got HIV on set was in 2004 and actors and actresses are frequently tested for sexually transmitted infections.

When I asked JuliaAnn if she was worried about HIV — even a little bit — she said she's "more concerned about being hit by lightning."

Well, that's pretty straightforward.

Another problem: the condoms themselves are dangerous.

"The only times I've ever been injured during a scene was when working with condoms," said JuliaAnn. "One scene in particular, the condom caused my skin to actually split open. It was very obvious and painful. Having an open tear in your skin is far more dangerous than shooting without a condom."

Yikes.

I guess our victory is just now hitting me. Tears are starting. Thank you everyone who stepped up. Im so fortunate to have you. #NoProp60

The fatal flaw of Prop 60, as frequently expressed by porn stars throughout the campaign, was that it failed to consult the people that mattered most — the actual actors and actresses who'd be impacted by the policy.

Porn stars are human, so they care about their health and don't oppose condoms just because they're daredevils or something.

"There is a misconception that performers don’t care about their health or are too uninformed to make good decisions for themselves, and although we can always use more education, we generally know a lot more about sexual health the rest of the general public," said star Chanel Preston to AskMen, also over email. "I would never trust the general public to make decisions about my sexual health."

Thank you to everyone who helped make the Prop 60 defeat possible. I am so happy to see performer voices make such a difference.

Quite sadly, many young men around the world still choose to not wear a condom. When I asked Missy Martinez about this, she told me — in all caps I might add — that porn is "ENTERTAINMENT."

She said that not wearing condoms because of porn is the equivalent of watching Vin Diesel pump the Nos and thinking it's cool to race that granny at the traffic light.

"Do people get driving tips from watching The Fast and the Furious? XXX is NO (sic) different than other Hollywood form of entertainment. Sexual health/responsibility needs to be something taught at home/school. There is NOTHING shameful/dirty/embarrassing with testing or using protection. As a society, we need to reinforce that."